King Charles' Christmas list has been finalised. Queen Camilla's family will join the rest of the royals at Sandringham this year, although there remain notable absences. Photo / Getty Images
King Charles' Christmas list has been finalised. Queen Camilla's family will join the rest of the royals at Sandringham this year, although there remain notable absences. Photo / Getty Images
Among the 40 or so guests that have been invited for Christmas dinner at Sandringham this year, Queen Camilla and her family will be joining for the royal family for the first time while Harry and Meghan are expected to remain in the US.
Diverging from Christmas arrangements in previousyears, Camilla and her children, grandchildren, and sister will be joining the royal family for the holiday celebrations at Sandringham House in Norfolk.
Camilla’s inclusion in this year’s celebrations is unconventional in comparison to other royal Christmases. Camilla would typically leave Sandringham in the afternoon and spend Christmas evening with her own family in Wiltshire.
Despite the lack of an official guest list, this year’s event is hoped and expected to be larger than the ones before. Christmas lunch is now being moved to the ballroom, instead of the dining room where it is traditionally held.
Queen Camilla’s son, Tom, her daughter, Laura, and their partners are expected to sit down for the dinner this year. Her five grandchildren - Lola, Freddy, Eliza, and twins Gus and Louis - are also supposed to join the Christmas event.
However, Prince Harry will not be joining for 2023′s Sandringham Christmas event. Instead, he will be staying in the US with Meghan and their two children, Archie and Lilibet. Although there has supposedly been a warming of relations between King Charles and Prince Harry, this remains yet to be translated into action.
King Charles is said to be “very close” with Camilla’s family. Her three grandsons and her great-nephew joined Prince George as pages of honour for the King’s coronation.
Camilla’s family will attend the Christmas dinner alongside senior Royal Family members. This includes Prince William and Princess Catherine and their three children - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
Princess Anne, King Charles’ sister, and her husband Timothy Laurence are poised to attend, as well as her son Peter Phillips and his two daughters, Isla and Savannah.
Anne’s daughter, Zara Tindall, is set to come with her husband Mike Tindall and their three children - Mia, Lena and Lucas.
The royals have been getting into the festive spirit. Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales took the kids to a Christmas service at Westminster Abbey on December 8 in London. Photo / Getty Images
Following down the royal line, Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, will attend with his wife Sophie and their children Lady Louise Windsor and James, Earl of Wessex.
Princess Beatrice is expected again. The royal was spotted at the event with her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, his son Christopher and their daughter Sienna last year.
Princess Eugenie will also be in attendance, bringing her husband, Jack Brooksbank, and their two sons August and Ernest.
Camilla will also have support from some of her ‘Queen’s Companions,’ formerly ‘Ladies in Waiting.’ Her sister, Annabel Ellio, will be joining the Sandringham celebrations.
Prince Andrew is also expected to join, sitting down at Sandringham with his ex-wife Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson. The pair are reported to be staying at Wood Farm in Norfolk. Despite divorcing in 1996, they remain close friends. They are currently looking after Queen Elizabeth’s corgis, Muick and Sandy, in light of her passing.
Fergie has not directly confirmed whether she is invited to Sandringham. However, the duchess, who is slowly building her career and identity with a recent feature on ITV’s This Morning, is likely wanting to be with her family on the day.
2023 was a big year for Fergie and Prince Andrew. Their daughter, Princess Eugenie, and her husband welcomed their younger son Ernest into the world at the end of May.
Now, Fergie is a grandmother to four children. Her oldest step-grandson, Wolfie Mapelli Mozzi, is seven, while her granddaughter, Sienna Mapelli Mozzi, is two and August Brooksbank is three.
As per tradition, the royal celebrations begin on Christmas Eve when everyone makes their way to Sandringham Estate. They will begin by opening presents, which are usually gag gifts as part of a royal tradition.
Then the Royal Family heads to Saint Mary Magdalene Church at Sandringham on Christmas morning. There, the family will attend services and greet crowds who show up to get a glimpse of the royals.
Christmas lunch is then served as they return home, while the afternoons are spent playing games.
Last year’s Christmas marked a massive change in how the royals chose to celebrate the season. It was the first Christmas in many decades that wasn’t held under the guidance of Queen Elizabeth II, who had passed away only a few months earlier.
